Air Force looks for better results in Mountain West men's basketball play

Air Force hopes two nonconference games set a tone for the first few months of 2011. One was a cover-your-eyes loss, the other an improbable win.

The loss was to Division III Colorado College, a game all Falcons fans remember.

“It still turns my stomach to this day,” guard Evan Washington said. “But I think it was good for us.”

That loss taught the Falcons some lessons. By the end of 2010, the Falcons had something positive to carry into the Mountain West portion of the schedule, which starts Wednesday night at Clune Arena against Utah. Against Sam Houston State on Dec. 28, Air Force was without injured starters Taylor Broekhuis and Michael Lyons, and fell behind by 18 points. The Falcons rallied to win by 11.

“We learned we have an extreme amount of potential,” forward Tom Fow said. “We showed it.”

Based on Air Force’s recent results in the Mountain West, its nonconference wins mean little. Washington pointed out that the Falcons have just one more win, at 9-4, than they had going into conference play last year. The Falcons have won just one conference regular-season game over the past two seasons.

“We have a lot to prove,” Washington said. “We were picked last in the preseason, and that gives us a lot of motivation to play with a chip on our shoulder against every team.”

There are reasons to believe Air Force will be more competitive this year, and reasons for pessimism.

Air Force has been much better shooting the ball, with big jumps in field-goal percentage, 3-point percentage and free-throw percentage. The biggest leap could be on defense, though. Air Force allowed opponents to shoot 45.1 percent from the field last year. That is down to 38.1 percent this year.

The biggest problem is rebounding, which is a byproduct of Air Force’s lack of size. That’s what worries coach Jeff Reynolds most. Opponents are rebounding a whopping 34 percent of their misses against Air Force. Rebounding won’t be easier in the Mountain West, which features many big, athletic frontcourts. It’s tough to win consistently giving up that many extra possessions.

Reynolds said losses to Northern Arizona and UTEP could be traced back to allowing too many offensive rebounds.

“The offensive rebounds concern me,” Reynolds said. “That’s something we’ve tried all year to remedy. Once we get into league play, all five guys have got to board it.”

Still, Reynolds and his players appear more confident. They’re not selling huge expectations for the conference season, but it should be better than years past.

“We’ve played some good basketball,” Reynolds said. “Whether that (turns) into more wins in the league, I don’t know. I think people across the country are now realizing how good this league is.”

Better shooting

One of the reasons Air Force might have a chance to improve in conference this year is improved shooting. Here are the comparisons from last year to this year:

2009-10

FG percentage 44.3 percent

3-point percentage 31.3 percent

Free-throw percentage 63.5 percent

2010-11

FG percentage 47.9 percent

3-point percentage 35.0 percent

Free-throw percentage 72.3 percent